Mike Mather

Mike Mather is an Emmy-winning and Murrow-winning investigative reporter.

In his 25-year career, he has reported nationally and internationally for NewsChannel 3, The Daily Press, The Virginian-Pilot, CBS News, and The New York Times. His stories have earned dozens of journalism awards, including a Pulitzer nomination.

Career highlights:

-Proved Norfolk city leaders were not telling the full truth about the death of a police recruit. The city’s police chief later lost his job.

-Tracked down a murderous fugitive in Russia and secured the man’s return to the United States. He was convicted.

-Exposed a broken system that allowed a Norfolk auctioneer to repeatedly pocket clients’ money, without consequences. Mike’s story led to a state investigation and felony charges.

-Gained a pardon for a man wrongfully convicted of rape.

-Revealed how the FBI lost control of secret evidence in the Colonial Parkway serial murders, leading the agency to re-open the cases.

-Uncovered fatal mistakes in Virginia Beach’s foster-care system that led to the death of a child. The state launched an investigation because of Mike’s stories, and the director resigned.

Mike is one of the only journalists in the nation to graduate from a police academy and SWAT academy, where he got an inside look at how officers are selected and trained. He and his wife Elizabeth have four boys, including triplets. One of Mike’s triplets, Owen, has Cerebral Palsy. Mike helped found a charity running team in Virginia Beach dedicated to including disabled children in athletic events. Mike is also a volunteer instructor for Wintergreen Adaptive Sports, where he helps teach people with disabilities, including his son, to ski or snowboard.

Mike was born and raised in Virginia Beach but now lives in the Ghent section of Norfolk. He enjoys running, photography, snowboarding and volleyball, and he is a private pilot. He and several NewsChannel 3 colleagues sometimes pool their musical talents to play in a band. Mike plays guitar.

Follow him on Twitter, @mikemather

Recent Articles

The dramatic trailer makes it look like a holiday blockbuster, but a new movie just released is playing for a limited audience: Police officers. It’s called “The Coming Storm,” and it is being distributed by the FBI. It is a professionally produced film depicting a fictional campus rampage, but featuring real Virginia State Police troopers. The depicted carnage and police response are taken from dozens of real scenarios that have vexed law enforcement more than a decade. This is how the FBI […]

State inspectors have handed out several critical violations to animal shelters in Hampton Roads. Some of the violations even led directly to animals dying in their care. All of the shelters were ordered to fix the problems, but did they?

UPDATE: Wesley Hadsell pleaded guilty to his federal ammunition charge in court on November 6th as part of a plea agreement. Hadsell will be sentenced in March. Prosecutors are expected to try and prove he’s an armed career criminal. To that, he could face up to life in prison. Norfolk, Va. – From jail, Wesley Hadsell has told us he is not guilty of federal charges he’s facing. Documents show police have watched Hadsell since his adopted daughter AJ vanished in March, […]